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Celtic kingship
As the most significant political office in Celtic culture, the position of king, in its various forms, held a religious as well as a social significance. The king was at the center of Celtic society. When a king died, his replacement was selected from a pool of candidates; by law all members of the clan whose ancestor back to the fourth generation had been king were eligible. The specific selection was likely made on the basis of a man’s ‘teulu’, battle record, respect among other kings, and political clout within the clan. Once he had been generally agreed upon, the king elect was asked to sit on the local kingship stone - the two most famous are Lia Fail in Ireland and the Stone of Scone in Scotland. Legend had it that the wrong man would be swallowed, but the clan’s choice was greeted with a scream. Inauguration A Celtic king was not just considered the ruler of his people, but a husband to the land. Because of this, his coronation was essentially a marriage. A woman, normally his primary wife, would ask the question “To whom does the cup belong?” Upon asking it, she would be pointed toward the new king. His acceptance of the cup from her hands and his drinking from it would complete the ceremony, symbolizing his marriage to the land. His faith to her would have to be constant but would take the form of being a good ruler - he was expected to protect the land and never show cowardice, make good laws, and find just judgments. If at any time he was found lacking, tradition said the land would grow barren until such time as the king was sacrificed and replaced. A king who had lost any part of his body even a finger, was considered unfit for office. The Name In British society, there were several names for rulers. Many early kings were known as ‘’gwledig’’, which translates as emperor but more likely referred to rulers of very small areas, perhaps the land within sight of his hall. ’’Ceredig Gwledig’’, ruler of Dumbarton Rock during the fifth century, is not known to have ruled anything more than the area immediately around his fortress. From the fifth century on, kings were known by the title of ‘’arglwyd’’/lord or ‘’brenhin’’/king. In Ireland they were ardri/high-king, ri tuaithe/king of one of five major kingdoms. At first, they would have controlled kingdoms no more than twenty-five miles in diameter. Kingdoms would have had villages every five to ten miles along the public roads, and would not have been any more than a hundred people. As kingdoms expanded, kings made their most trusted men ’’unben’’, minor chieftains who swore fealty to their lords but had halls of their own and collected tribute from smaller portions of land than their kings. Official Activities A king’s official duties included the protection of his villages; his strength and reputation kept raiders away. The king was also expected to support them in times of famine and disaster with grain, labor, and funds. One of the ways he made a name for himself was to conduct raids - he and his warriors would try stealing cattle, pigs, and other valuables from neighboring kings and in turn defended his own livestock. This aspect of his rule served several functions. It gave his warriors something to do in peace. His raids reminded an opposing king’s peasants of what their ruler was protecting them from, as did raids on himself for his own people. Raiding also helped keep warriors sharp, while working as a showcase for improvements among them. Kings also lead their men on a more personal level. They led hunts for harts, deer, but also fox, boar, wolves, and possibly even lions. Long tradition says that the hart’s head was awarded to the person who gave it the first serious wound. He would then offer it to the lady of his choice. At feast, kings gave away armaments, jewelry, and lands to warriors while entertainers might be rewarded with silver, livestock, or even the occasional slave depending on their social stature and the level of their performance. The Hill-Fort A hill-fort was the construct where the king’s hall, stable, granary, kennel, smith, carpenter, and various huts for servants and warriors were located. Hill-forts were chosen for several reasons. In a culture where a king might only rule a small number of square miles, locating one's capital at a high point allowed him to see his kingdom at a glance. Conversely, all villages were able to see the king's hall. It served as a constant reminder of his presence. A second reason was defensibility. Most hill-forts had a formation of boulders that were shaped into a natural wall around the site. This was supplemented with a series of ditches. An enemy king might be able to steal cattle, but attacking a well-fortified position was an entirely different notion. Inside the hill-fort the porter, seneschal, or gatekeeper, is one of the least understood offices among the Celts. He was stationed at the entrance to test would-be warriors. The position was held by an established warrior, a man whose successes gave selectees instant credibility. If a man failed to qualify, there was no loss of standing in the veteran rejecting him. Wit, strength, and athleticism were all good qualities in a prospective warrior. Hill-forts were the hub of the kingdom's activity, the focus of all trade, and the place to go for justice. They were the king’s residence and therefore the for the largest and group of cattle, pigs, horses, and hounds. Bigger and heavier than the Greyhound, they were designed for the more broken ground of the highlands. There they were faster than their sleek counterparts. Deerhounds have rough fur, in blue, brindle, fawn, gray, red, or yellow. Males stand 30-32 inches (76-81 cm) high and weigh 85-110 lbs (38-50 kg). The were once bred to hunt Red Deer by coursing. A lighter, less bulky version capable of running up to 43 miles per hour (70 kph), but unable to keep pace with Deerhound on broken terrain. Greyhounds have fine, smooth fur and can come in other colors but gray. Males stand 28-30 inches (71-76 cm) and weigh 60-75 lbs (27-40 kg). The Hall Located in the hill-fort, the hall was the center of life in British heroic age society. First and foremost, it was the king’s home, normally there was a room in the back of the hall for him. Celtic halls have been found up to 30 meters long and 15 wide, large enough to fit dozens of warriors at a long table. These have not been found, due to their transitory nature, but there was a pit dug under and these have been found with bones and other table waste. The building would have been made of wattle and daub, essentially mud and sticks, with thatching for a roof. The king would have sat at the head of the table, and the entrance was likely through a porch in the center a side wall. As the meeting place for warriors, the hall was where hunts were organized, most famously for harts, with the prize of a head going to the winner’s choice of women. The hall was also where daily politics were worked out, which warrior belonged in which bench, . Feasting was a common use of the hall. These were furnished with the spoils of a recent hunt or cattle but also local cheese, bragawt or honey-wine often flavored with fruits, spices, grains, or hops, beer, paratha a Welsh pizza, bread, fruits, vegetables, and on rare occasion wine. As an opportunity to act as a community, the feast was a perfect time to reward warriors - by announcing their adulthood, giving them their own parcels of land, or making them a part of his council. It was also an opportunity for gift-giving. The feast itself was considered the king’s bounty because he provided all the food, but for acts of courage or skill he might make the personal gesture of breaking off a piece of a torque he wore, a ring, or necklace, and give it to someone. If a man was truly lucky, his king might bestow on him a sword or armor. The king also owned everything in the kingdom, so the women who served the hall, and those who provided company for the warriors, were another example of his generosity. For servants, service to the king meant they were protected and had both a place to stay and food. The younger women who ventured in came hoping to be with a man who confronted death. Those who remained stayed in hopes that some of the king’s bounty to the warriors would be passed on to them, or that they might be permanently married to one. Feasting also involved entertainment. Bards praised the king and his warriors for their deeds and told stories from myth, legend, and local history. Acrobats jumped, rolled, and did somersaults. There were professional farters whose function was to stink up the hall. And of course with a simple lute a girl or girls might please an audience. As the king's home and the place where feasts took place it was the place of camaraderie with warriors, of music and stories with professional entertainers and of a personal bond with the king through gifts of jewelry, armor, weapons, land, and position. It was the political, military, and emotional capital of a kingdom. The hall was also where the king’s champion was shown the most respect. The king’s best warrior, he could stand in for the king in personal combat, or lead his warriors into battle. At home, he was given a special portion of the food - the best.